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15/06/2017

Pippa Vosper, the London-based editor-turned-retailer, has opened a new boutique in Notting Hill bearing her name.

The “Pippa” store follows on from Vosper’s first retail venture, RSPV, a boutique in West London’s Chiswick area that hosted designer sample sales.

Vosper said that she always drew customers based in Notting Hill, as well as from the nearby Knightsbridge and Mayfair areas, so moving to a central location had been a long time coming.

“I’ve spent so much time in Notting Hill, growing up and living here, that it’s always been my dream location,” said Vosper, adding that her aim is to create a shopping destination and focus on brick-and-mortar retail for the moment. “We’re just off the Ledbury Road, Joseph and Matchesfashion are around the corner and it’s great to sit next to those stores at a central location. All the girls walking from Portobello toward Westbourne Grove usually just see us and walk by.”

The new space will follow a similar concept to the original boutique, with the focus being on designer sample sales. The first sale, marking the launch of the store, features resort and beachwear, selling past season, discounted items from the likes of Mara Hoffman, Brazilian designer Adriana Degreas and March 11, known for their popular embroidered summer dresses. Sales by Turkish designer Gül Hürgel and Versace are also in the pipeline.

In addition to hosting sample sales, the new store will introduce a new feature that will allow designers to take over the space for week-long periods, to sell both seasonal and discounted collections as well as host events and industry appointments.

“It’s not a subletting arrangement, I would be hosting the designers and giving them control of the space for a week or two. It would allow young designers to showcase their products and collections for both customers and editors. The space can also be used as a showroom. At the same time we could also cater to more established names who don’t have a space in London,” said Vosper.

13/06/2017

This fall, Christie’s will auction the personal collection of Audrey Hepburn including a dress designed by Hubert de Givenchy, an array of ballet flats and Cecil Beaton photographs. In addition to the Sept. 27 auction in London, there will be an online sale that will be open for bidding Sept. 19 through Oct. 3.

More than 24 years after her death, Hepburn remains iconic for her demure style, thanks in part to her longtime collaborator and good friend Givenchy. The actress suggested he be hired to design her wardrobe for “Sabrina,” which was her second film. On the block will be a robin’s egg blue cloqué silk cocktail dress with satin fringe that Givenchy designed for Hepburn for a 1966 editorial photo shoot with William Klein promoting “Two for the Road” with Albert Finney. Other emblems of her style — a Burberry trenchcoat and an assortment of her signature ballet flats — will also be up for bids, with starting estimates of $7,595 and nearly $1,900, respectively.

Christie’s knows firsthand how Hepburn’s fashion choices can drive sales soaring beyond estimates. In December 2006, a Givenchy-designed black satin evening dress the actress wore in the 1961 film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” sold at Christie’s South Kensington for $577,638 — well beyond the pre-sale opening estimate of $63,310. At that time, the auction set a new world record for a dress made for a movie. Givenchy gave the dress to Dominique Lapierre and his wife, who is also named Dominique, to raise money for their charity City of Joy Aid.

During her career, Hepburn won Tony, Grammy, Emmy and Academy awards and two of the scripts she used for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “Charade” will be up for sale with estimates starting at nearly $76,000 and nearly $19,000, respectively. Each is marked up with the actress’ notes and revisions in turquoise ink — her color of choice. Another memento is the gold lighter engraved “For My Fair Lady, Gene Allen, December 1963,” a gift from the art director of the 1964 film of the same name. There is also a letter from Truman Capote in which he writes that he is pleased with her taking the role of “Holly Golightly” for the 1958 film adaptation of his novella “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

Photographs from Hepburn’s personal archives on sale will include Beaton’s wardrobe photos from “My Fair Lady,” personally dedicated prints by Steven Meisel for Vanity Fair and personal portraits by Bud Fraker, a stills photographer for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”Read more at:http://www.marieprom.co.uk

09/06/2017

You can’t beat a good wedding. And as I’ve just discovered, a good wedding abroad is even better.

The location was Estepona in south east Spain. The bride is a close friend and work colleague of Mrs H. And thanks to an unusual run of good behaviour on my part I was chosen to fill the ‘plus one’ spot on the invitation.

It’s 28 years since we were last in that sun-kissed part of the world. Our eldest was just three months and we were desperate for a short winter break.

On that occasion we hired a car and I was reminded of the challenging drive from Malaga to Marbella when we were held up by a nasty accident involving a motorbike.

The biker was lying prostrate on the ground and was being bagged by paramedics. It’s a two-lane motorway but with quite sharp bends — not helped by routine speeds of 140kph in an 80kph zone.

We checked in to our hotel where the receptionist was pleased to tell us he had spent a year living in Bray, Co Wicklow some years back. However, when I spoke to him in my best Wicklow accent, he didn’t understand a word, so I have my doubts. Maybe it was my west Wickla twang…

The wall-to-wall sunshine that greeted us on arrival was even more intense on the day of the wedding. It was 31 degrees by mid-afternoon when many of the guests assembled in a small coastal village where a bus was to bring us to the church.

Fashionably late

But the bus never showed up and so knots of bib and tuckered wedding guests sought out pockets of shade; and the delay turned into a fantastic ice-breaker as we got to know each other. Myself and another guest quickly discovered a shared love of practical jokes and we happily shared our best stories of success and near disaster.

The groomsmen earned their crust organising a fleet of taxis to get us to the church about 30 minutes late. Any plans by the bride to be fashionably late were scuppered, but she didn’t seem to mind.

After a lovely ceremony we emerged into the incredible heat to find a couple of buses sitting in the shade of some trees ready to bring us into the mountains to the reception at one of the more established golf complexes on the Costa. On arrival, plates upon plates of tapas emerged from the kitchens and the wine flowed as everyone relaxed during the photographic interlude when the bride, groom and their families recorded the day for posterity.

The sun was beginning to dim when we sat down to the wedding meal in a beautiful flag-stoned courtyard. What an incredibly romantic setting. Our table was mainly populated by medics and solicitors and included a relative of our esteemed former President, Mary Robinson.

As many of you know, her father, Dr Bourke, was a GP in Ballina for many years and very much of the old school. I cannot do justice to the superb raconteuring skills of our fellow wedding guest, but his story about an American holiday undertaken by Dr Bourke and his family is worth retelling.

A citation

Driving a hired car, and with his family navigating, Dr Bourke acted on an instruction to turn left rather abruptly and shot across a four-lane highway. Relief at having survived the manoeuvre did not last long as his passengers heard the siren of a motorcycle policeman behind them. The indefatigable doctor rolled down his window and asked the officer how could he be of assistance. “I have no option but to issue you with a citation,” he drawled. “What is your name and where are you from?”

“I am Dr Bourke from the county of Mayo in Ireland. A citation — that’s very kind of you,” he replied. “And who are you, sir, and where are you from?” the unruffled doctor asked. His American accent beginning to falter, the police officer said he too hailed from Co Mayo, from where his parents had emigrated when he was a child. Dr Bourke then asked if his parents were Patrick and Mary and were they from a particular town land outside Ballina?

When the policeman said yes, Dr Bourke looked him in the eye and said: “I looked after your mother in labour and brought you into this world.” At which point the officer put away his notebook.

That evening of superb food and great company under a moonlit sky was nothing short of magical. You really can’t beat a good Irish wedding.Read more at:mermaid prom dresses